Eli Lilly to slash some insulin prices by 70%

Eli Lilly announced yesterday it would be slashing the list prices of Humalog and Humulin, its most-prescribed insulins, by 70% or more in the quarter starting October.

The company also said it would cap insulin costs at $35 a month to give greater access to more patients who pay out-of-pocket for the life-saving drug.

Insulin is among the most commonly used drugs for those suffering from diabetes and more than 8.5 million people depend on it just in America.

After the cost cut, the list price for a 10-milliliter vial of Humalog will fall to $66.40 from $274.70, per a Lilly spokeswoman. However, insurers already pay much less than that. According to the company’s website, in 2021, the average net price Lilly charged for Humalog was $43 after discounts and rebates.

Pharmaceutical companies that make insulin have been under growing pressure to reduce insulin prices, which have seen a more than 600% increase in the last 20 years. Eli Lilly’s Humalog’s list price has gone up by more than 1,000% in the last 30 years.

Inflation Reduction Act
The Inflation Reduction Act imposed a $35-a-month price cap on insulin for senior citizens on Medicare. Even in his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden spoke on insulin prices and stressed expanding the price cap to all.

The move by Lilly has been praised by Biden, who wants other Big Pharma companies to follow in Lilly’s footsteps. But the move by the drug maker comes at a time when the company is trying to have its weight-loss drugs to be covered by Medicare.